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FCC's Non-Commercial 2021 Opening Aftermath

The problem in Wyoming, and really anywhere. .but i saw it first hand.. is money.


Bingo! We've talked elsewhere about budget cuts at Yellowstone Public Radio and Montana Public Radio.

I just took a look at funding stories at Wyoming Public Media, and they too are under assault from their government.


Non commercial radio is under attack by state legislatures, who see it as liberal and a target for cuts.
 
The problem in Wyoming, and really anywhere. .but i saw it first hand.. is money. KLMI has a full time staff 4, including the owner. Two part timers. (me is one of them!) KLMI is licensed to a town of 250 or so people. There are a few other towns of 200-250 people in albany county.. theres no way they could ever support a station
Which would explain why they have that Laramie booster, since that's where the money really is, and would explain you see a lot of move-ins from rural and suburban areas, right?
 
they too are under assault from their government.
Are commercial radio stations also under assault? Other than that, I could see how republican legislatures would want to reduce funding for something they disagree with.
 
Everybody has their challenges. I thought this thread was about non-commercial filings.
Me too, the wording was just a bit confusing. By the way, do you have any new filings in your area?
 
Which would explain why they have that Laramie booster, since that's where the money really is, and would explain you see a lot of move-ins from rural and suburban areas, right?
The booster is because despite 50,000 Watts on a hill only 20-25 miles NW of Laramie, right off the highway...... theres mountain in the wall between the KLMI main site and laramie, terrain shielding the signal
 
The booster is because despite 50,000 Watts on a hill only 20-25 miles NW of Laramie, right off the highway...... theres mountain in the wall between the KLMI main site and laramie, terrain shielding the signal
Another issue with non-comms in a state like Wyoming or Montana: Distance between towns and the terrain between. Usually that means lots of translators or satellite stations peppering the state. All those translators and satellite stations need maintenance, capital updates, land and tower leases and other legal expenses. When dealing with a town or community that has less than 1,000 persons, maybe fifty or sixty of that small community would be considered regular donors?
 
Another issue with non-comms in a state like Wyoming or Montana: Distance between towns and the terrain between. Usually that means lots of translators or satellite stations peppering the state. All those translators and satellite stations need maintenance, capital updates, land and tower leases and other legal expenses. When dealing with a town or community that has less than 1,000 persons, maybe fifty or sixty of that small community would be considered regular donors?
Then you have KUWR where a lot of Laramie's stations is on Pilot Hill. That mountain allows a station to cover both Laramie and Cheyenne good, although it requires a lot of watts, and even then, there are some parts of Cheyenne that is not coverd by Pilot Hill. Meanwhile, Cheyenne area stations doesn't quite make it to Laramie unless there is tropo (the exception being KPAW and KOLT). I always wonder if stations like KUWR (but also KLWV, KCGY, etc) should apply for an FM booster in the Cheyenne area. I take it that's the heart of the KSUW/KBUW problem as well, those mountains.
 
This is where state support becomes so important.
On a related note, I always wondered how much donors an LPFM or a religious NCE gets from their community? Also, yes, that's what the state should do
 
On a related note, I always wondered how much donors an LPFM or a religious NCE gets from their community? Also, yes, that's what the state should do
That's a struggle for LPFM's in general. They have very limited coverage, budgets, and funding to begin with. Trying to sustain one, even with a certain amount of volunteers, is many times a dead end.
 
An LPFM has a tunable signal about 3.6 miles from the tower based on the maximum 100 watts at 30 meters. That's roughly 40 square miles and a bit larger than the typical township on northern and midwestern states and towns in Maine, Vermont, New Hampshire, New York, etc. The potential population is usually very small compared to the stations they share the dial with. For many LPFMs listener donations are minimal and most sell a few thousand in underwriting each year to pay the bills. I'd say a typical LPFM bills about $5,000 a year or less. If you have any responsibility for a FCC license (AM, FM TV) you cannot apply for or control a LPFM station. Thus many operators have zero experience in radio. The result is about 1/4rd to 1/3rd of LPFMs turn in their license within the first 10 years, mostly within 5 years.

An Oregon LPFM I know had an income of about $2,450 in the past fiscal year, approximately $20 under actual expenses since the station is located n private property and studios located in an out building on the property.

Religious stations that carry ministries generally are on a 'share' program where the station gets a percentage of the dollars coming in to the ministry from the zip codes the station coverage covers. Many ministries have a 'offer' of something for a suggested donation, so if that's $20, then the station might get $10. Like other NCEs many sell Underwriting and have listeners that donate and many times monthly.
 
Thanks to Kelly A, I scoped out recnet.com/window, whereby I learned that a local LPFM operation at 98.5 FM (Harrisville, WV) that is currently running 60 watts has also submitted an app for a 5,000 watt NCE. Can both be kept? Just curious. If it is built, the 5,000 watter should be heard easily in my area, especially at 91.1 FM.
 
Bingo! We've talked elsewhere about budget cuts at Yellowstone Public Radio and Montana Public Radio.

I just took a look at funding stories at Wyoming Public Media, and they too are under assault from their government.


Non commercial radio is under attack by state legislatures, who see it as liberal and a target for cuts.
Yet count how many times you see on PBS the name of the Koch foundation (I don't know so much about NPR).
 
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